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Current Extent of Disasters in Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Idris M. Nur
Idris M. Nur*
Affiliation:
Head of Agriculture and Rural Development Division Organization of African Unity (OAU) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
*
P. O. Box 1460 Omdurman, Sudan
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Abstract

The people oFf Africa are exposed to a wide range of disasters that seriously have aggravated the Continent's economic situation. Economic losses and human sufferings from drought, desertification, locust infestation, infectious diseases, epidemics, and armed conflicts are the dominant disasters that the people in the African countries face, and they have rendered the population utterly vulnerable. Disasters have aggravated Africa's economic situation. The cumulative effect of disasters include loss of property, injury, death, mounting food import bills, health hazards, environmental degradation, backward economic development, displaced people, refugees, and nutritional deficiency.

Today, 175 million Africans out of a total population of 744 million people (23.5%) are suffering from chronic hunger; this is an increase of 50% from 25years ago. In many African countries, up to half of the population suffers from absolute poverty. It is projected that Africa will be the only Continent to continue with the current level of poverty for another decade.

Type
Special Report
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 14 , Issue 2 , June 1999 , pp. 34 - 42
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 1999

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